Osseointegrated implants are typically metallic screws that may be placed in a bone of a patient for supporting a prosthesis. For example, an osseointegrated implant may include a dental implant for insertion into a jawbone of a patient. Such an implant may support an artificial tooth after the loss of a natural tooth. Replacement of a tooth is often a challenging surgical procedure when the remaining bone has insufficient height to support the implant.
The success of implant dentistry in the maxillary posterior is determined largely by the available bone and the location of the sinus. Because maxillary bone is often soft and in short supply, it is generally helpful to use a regenerative material—such as autogenic, allogeneic, xenogeneic, or synthetic bone graft—to achieve additional bone mass, and thus, primary stability in the maxillary bone. Significant considerations in treatment include how posterior the edentulous area is, as well as the length of time a space has been edentulous.
Sinus lift surgery can restore, replace, and create bone in areas with inadequate bone. The procedure to place the grafts are often complicated, time consuming, invasive, painful, and expensive. A patient must have the additional surgery, and then wait 4-6 months until the graft has “taken” before the implant can be placed. The grafting procedure is also susceptible to infection; it can be uncomfortable; and it can be prohibitively expensive for patients.
Various dental implants and techniques have been developed to augment bones. One such technique includes a method of lifting a membrane using hydraulic pressure applied by a syringe. Another technique requires the use of various sinus burs and condensers of increasing width in conjunction with a pliable atraumatic bone grafting mixture and hydraulic pressure from a surgical handpiece. Another technique includes the use of a sleeve to raise the subantral membrane and form a cavity for injection of bone growth stimulant.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,388,343 to Better et al. attempted to overcome these deficiencies through the injection of bone grafting material through a hollow in the implant itself This injection occurs through an inlet on one side of the anchor, and takes place only during or prior to final placement of the anchor. This technique creates difficulty in getting the side inlet aligned with the tubing for the injection of bone grafting material. The implant described in Better et al. also fails to provide any means of holding the injected bone grafting material in place in close proximity to the implant, for further stability.
Although the above techniques may improve the ability to augment a bone, they have continuing deficiencies, including complexity, invasiveness, and pain. The dental implant system described herein can help reduce the need for sinus lift surgery, along with all the negatives associated with it. It avoids the high cost and high radiation exposure of a CT scan. It can achieve ideal implant placement using stock abutments rather than custom abutments. It need not be used only by very experienced specialists in the maxillofacial surgery field. All these positives lead to less cost to the patient, shorter treatment time, and greater ease of care for the dentist. Short implants and narrow implants—along with their inherent liabilities—can be avoided. Compared to current state-of-the-art dental-implant-bone-grafting techniques, the dental implant system described herein provides a reduction of steps, easier bone-grafting material extrusion post-graft, more secure grafts, and decreased need for sinus lift surgery.